Easel.



PATEN'IBD JAN. 15, 1907.

H. B. PERRY;

BASEL.

APPLIOATIQN FILED FEB. s. 1905.

HOVARD B. PERRY, OF WAKEFIELD, RHODE ISLAND.

EASEL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed February 6,1905. Serial No. 244.504.

Patented Jan. 15, 1907.

T0 a/ZZ whom t ina/y concern:

Be it known that I, HOWARD B. PERRY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Wakefield, in the county of Washington and State of Rhode Island, have invented new and useful Improvements in Easels, of which the following is a specification. f

This invention relates to an improved easel for supporting cards, labels, signs, photographs, and the like and the object is to provide an improved article of manufacture of the kind named and for the purpose stated that will be inexpensive to manufacture, simple, light, and at the same time possess all the strength necessary for supporting such articles as are mentioned above.

A further object of the invention is to provide an easel that is made of resilient material, so as to be expansible to support different sized articles, and collapsible, so as to be packed in a small space for shipment, and the parts are so constructed and arranged that they may be interlocked when collapsed, and thus avoid the use of large boxes or packages for shipping and storing.

The invention is fully illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which are to be considered in connection with this specification, and in which- Figure 1 is a front view of the easel `as it appears in use. Fig. 2 is a side view. Fig. 3 is a front elevation showing one way in which the easel maybe folded when it is to be packed for shipment, and Fig. 4 is a similar view showing another manner in which it may be folded.

In carrying out the invention I prefer to construct the easel of wire that possesses considerable resiliency in order that the parts may be readily spread and collapsed. The entire easel is formed of two pieces of such wire, one piece being designated by A and the other piece by B.

The two pieces of wire are joined together by twisting at a point intermediate their ends, as at a, and just above this twist, as at l), the upper ends of the pieces are bent downwardly at an acute angle to the parts below the twist to form rear supporting-legs c and d, which are also joined by twisting, as at e, at a point intermediate their ends and irst-mentioned twist a. These supporting-legs extend in parallelism from the top or twist a to the twist e, and from the latter point they diverge and terminate in eyes or loops f, which serve as feet. The front supporting-standards g and 7L diverge from the top or twist a and terminate in coil-clasps t. are preferably formed so that one-half of each coil will extend upon each side of the stand- These coils ard, thereby permitting the coils to be easily inserted between the feet of the rear legs when the parts are to be colla sed and locked.

When in use, the car or label O is held by the clasps 'i and rests against the standards and the rear supporting-legs are spread apart, so as to form a stable support for the easel, IVhen not in use, the easels may be collapsed, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, and packed or shipped in small boxes. To colla se the ease and hold the parts interlocked, t e front standards are rst brought together and inserted between the rear sup orts and the two clasps s rung behind the 'eet of the rear supportingegs, and by the tendency of the front standards to spread apart they will tightly engage the rear legs and the parts will be maintained in a collapsed condition, as shown in Fig. 3. They-may also be interlocked by iirst springing the clasps of the standards back of the feet, and, if need be, the clasp may be pushed through the space between the feet and sprung over in front of the latter, as shown in Fig. 4.

By virtue of the resilience of the material of which the easel is constructed the rear supporting-legs may be spread at any distance from or arranged at any angle to the front supporting-standards, and thereby change the inclination of the thing to be exhibited. The front supporting-standards may also be spread or brought together, so as to clasp and hold articles of dierent widths.

Having thus describedmy invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. As an article of manufacture, an easel consisting of two members of resilient wire connected together intermediate their ends and bentat an acute angle adjacent to the point of connection to form front and rear supports, the members constituting the rear support being' separated at their ends, and the members constituting the front support being inclined downwardly and outwardly IOO from the point of connection and having each of their free ends bent into a clas ing-eye, the members of the front support a apted to be swung together and the separated ends of the rear support adapted to be engaged with the eyes of the front support to hold the parts substantially parallel.

IIO

2. As an article of manufacture, an easel consisting of two pieces of resilient material, each of which is bent at an intermediate point to provide front and rear supports which may be brought together or separated at their lower ends, the front supports being connected at the top near the bend and diverging therefrom when in use, the rear supports being connected at the top and at a point mtermediate the top and llower ends land extending in parallelism between such 

